Shopping in large stores can be inefficient and time consuming unless the shopper is very familiar with the store inventory and the location of desired items. Typically, the shopper will wander around retrieving items on a shopping list. An attempt may be made to shop aisle by aisle, but often things are missed and aisles are repeated. Also, aisles containing nothing on the shopping list may be traversed unnecessarily. Many large stores place signs at each aisle describing items which can be found there. The signs typically contain 8 to 10 items, while the aisle may contain hundreds of different items. It is assumed that “related” items will be found nearby. The definition of what is related is not standard or known by the shopper. In addition, the shopper is not always well informed about where to shop to obtain the lowest price for the desired items.
Thus, what is needed is a method and apparatus for interactive shopping. Preferably, the method and apparatus will orient the shopper as to the shopper's current position in a store and will guide the shopper directly to the desired items in an efficient manner. In addition, the method and apparatus will preferably aid the shopper in making price comparisons among different stores.